Mike Riversdale

Further to the studio tour .

I can't remember if I posted a similar photograph (prolly), but it's amazing eh. There I am standing on Waitārere Beach looking directly north and voila, the volcanoes of the North Island are in view. They are 144km (90 miles) away! Takes around 2½ hours to drive from one to the other. I am absolutely sure I've listed this before, go on find it with the search up there and prove it.

All my growing up years in Monmouth we knew and were blase about the recording studios on the outskirts, it had been there before us and it would be there after us. It also meant it was not unusual (but not an everyday occasion) to be in a pub and to recognise people at the other end of the bar. Famously my Dad had a drinking buddy he called Bobbie. My Dad was not up with music and it took quite some time for us to realise that Bobbie = Robert Plant. Rockfield Studios , the world's first residential studios, has had so many well known artists and bands through, check out the list on Wikipedia. And so, on the weekend I visited via an official tour . As with the whole studio setup the tour is very much a family run affair as you walk around the various buildings hearing how stables are now recording studios, how that wall is the Oasis Wonderwall , that's the grass the brothers fought upon, how the Stone Roses saved the place but started in jail, the piano Yellow was written upon

There's a story told by actor Bernard Hill about his Lord Of The Rings costume whilst portraying  Théoden that on the inside of his breastplate there were intricate designs and patterns that would never be seen by moviegoers; "It made me feel like a real king, something there not for the screen but for me." I find a lot of such detail in buildings is up high, hidden from everyday viewing. The little details that the architect has created because it made her smile, or the flourish in a corner that made the builder happy. Always look up . And always add your own touch to whatever you created be it the beans on toast for lunch, the code you're writing, or the month long event you're hosting. Something that if no-one else notices still makes you smile.

I can't recall what was so special about this tanker that the tugboat needed to do a special welcome by splurging it's hose water all over it. Fun to watch though.

Just because I wore a tuxedo onesie I was asked to be in the Vintage Whanganui 2023 competition.  One lined up with all these amazing people in spectacular costumes ( photos ), paraded around when it was your turn, and when the time came winners were decided by a table of judges. I didn't win. But I had a bloody good laugh.

The Vintage Weekend in Whanganui is very very cool and I'd heartily recommend it to all those with a sense of style, adventure, and fun. Music of all sort s, costumes, art, and vehicles are on show as the town centre closes to traffic. 

Here's the following new SEVENTEEN Wales photo albums up for those that want to have a poke around: General Coastal Wales Inland Wales Towns Llandrindod Wells Crickhowell Caernarfon Beddgelert Betws-y-Coed Llandudno Porthmadog Bishop's Castle (England) Places and Things Pentre Ifan Burial Chamber St David's Cathedral Devil's Bridge Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru / National Library of Wales Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch Conwy Castle Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

There will always come times when it's your turn to pull on your big boy pants and do the thing you know you have to do. Be like this spinifex and just go for it!

Waiting for everyone to move was never gonna happen so I edited out the people, blurred the background and hopefully have left the two subjects for your eyes to be caught by. The statue, Woman Of Words , is the work of New Zealand sculptor Virginia King, and is made of stainless steel and embellished with words and from Mansfield's writing. At night the statue is lit up from inside. [ source: Wikipedia ]

Let the sounds and calmness take you away from your worries of today.

I miss my mate from Waitārere Beach, she's the best dog ever.